Personal sports writing archive of Blake Murphy.

Thunder Find A Perfect Fit With Sharpshooter Anthony Morrow

Title: Thunder Find A Perfect Fit With Sharpshooter Anthony MorrowDate: July 15, 2014Original Source:Nylon CalculusSynopsis: This article looked at the under-the-radar signing the Oklahoma City Thunder made in landing sharpshooter Anthony Morrow, filling a subtle hole in their offense.

The Oklahoma City Thunder owned the league’s seventh-best offense this past season. Unlike the Houston Rockets or Miami Heat, however, the Thunder’s offense was fuelled not by hyper-efficient shot selection, but an above-average ability to connect on a fairly average distribution of shots.

While they haven’t moved the needle much this offseason, their key acquisition should terrify Western Conference defenses. In adding Anthony Morrow on a three-year, $10 million contract, the Thunder may have just plugged the only area you could call a hole in their offense.

As mentioned, the Thunder had a very average shot distribution this past season, ranking anywhere from 13th to 21st in the league in the percentage of shots that come from each of the five main areas on the floor.

In four of those areas, the Thunder ranked among the league’s top-10 most effective teams. The team’s offensive profile, however, had one glaring weakness – the generally hyper-efficient corner three.